Night Chat, Token of Command

At the same time as the Granary meeting, in the Baron's study within the main castle of Tevalinburg, the Baron had not yet slept, even though it was late at night.

The Chancellor was accompanying the Baron, chatting with Pastor Alphons.

The two of them weren't playing chess or drinking tea; they were just discussing a map.

The map clearly depicted the Giovanni River basin, and many places marked with red dots were not within the Baron's territory.

One could say that Western maps are drawn quite impressionistically; a few small triangles represent a mountain, and the number of small triangles indicates the number of peaks.

A river snaked and twisted. If its name wasn't written on it, one might mistake it for a road, as roads are drawn similarly.

Pastor Alphons pointed to the red markings on the neighboring territories on the map and said, "The work the priests are doing is very difficult. In the past four and a half weeks, there have been nearly a thousand reported attacks.

Neither the priests nor the army seem to have found any trace of this Oddity."

The Baron also scratched his head.

On the eve of preparing to gather troops to attack the neighboring territory, the priest had brought up an old topic from a month ago.

The incident involving a Malevolent Spirit in the neighboring territory.

He hadn't expected this matter to drag on for so long without resolution. If he hadn't used it as an argument when gathering materials to attack the other party, the Baron would have probably forgotten about it.

The Baron moved his hand back and forth across the map, asking with some confusion, "Since it's clear that such a Malevolent Spirit exists within this area, why can't we investigate it step by step?"

Pastor Alphons shook his head with some difficulty, "We can't investigate. This entire area is deep in forests and shrouded in mist. Even during the day, it's like a ghost realm, with no sunlight.

The monster moves freely here, and the forest is too vast. There are villages surrounding the forest.

They could be exposed to its attack range at any moment, and it has indeed been continuously raiding these villages."

The Baron was somewhat annoyed. He knew that if the priest brought this up, it meant there had to be some other hidden meaning behind it, which was what bothered him the most.

Pastor Alphons wasn't in a hurry. After a short while, he continued, "The church is primarily concerned with matters of faith. We are not concerned with or interested in the conflicts between nobles.

However, to prevent the casualties of war from being too severe for the populace and to avoid disrupting their recovery and livelihood, the Holy See can dispatch a specialized medical team to the battlefield to treat soldiers and civilians affected by the war."

"I'm not interested in what you want me to do, and I don't want the Holy See involved in this war."

The Baron's words were resolute, but Pastor Alphons seemed confident. "We can send ten medical teams to provide medical care to the innocent civilians caught in the crossfire.

I know that once the war begins, too many extra people in the army will just be a nuisance. You won't have to worry about these medical personnel; each medical team will be led by a foot knight and accompanied by ten Temple spearmen for protection."

After saying this, the Baron understood the implied meaning.

In fact, the Baron had understood it long ago, but he simply didn't want to accept it. However, the conditions offered by Mus this time were indeed very high.

"First, I must state that I may not be able to guarantee that I can help you accomplish what you need done."

"You don't need you or your army to do anything. The people I send are there to provide medical care to the innocent suffering on the battlefield. They won't do anything else, and you don't need to do anything else, Baron."

The two of them then reached a superficial verbal agreement.

Pastor Alphons clearly prepared to get up and take his leave.

Before leaving, he touched the small red knitted hat he was wearing and suddenly asked, "There are rumors circulating that Ergons Tervalin and Sir Davis Tevalin are the same person, merely using some kind of magic mask to alter their appearance?"

The Baron naturally could not give any official verbal confirmation, only stating that it was baseless gossip.

The priest smiled, "I think it's baseless gossip too. Otherwise, if this person could change their appearance to anyone at will, would anyone in this world be able to catch who they are?"

"Indeed. Who would abandon their noble status for no reason? To pretend to be someone unrelated, to escape their noble identity? It is indeed baseless gossip."

After the priest finished speaking, he left, and the Chancellor escorted him out.

The Baron hadn't thought much of it at first, but as he sat in his seat, he felt increasingly uneasy.

How much effect could that magic artifact truly have? Could it really change into any appearance at will?

Then, if he wanted to assassinate anyone, could he completely absolve himself of responsibility?

Thinking further, if one day he tired of being a Sir and wanted to be a Baron? Could he disguise himself as his own son?

No, he probably couldn't.

The Baron cleared his mind, noting that his son's body was very frail, and their builds were different, as were their heights.

Feeling as though he was scaring himself, the Baron chuckled and continued to sign the mobilization order at his desk.

This war had to be fought, and it had to be won. Even if the Baron's territory wasn't expanded into a Viscountcy, I should gain another dozen or twenty manors.

At that time, I will grant fiefs to some knights from the group of elite court knights under Ergons Tervalin's command.

"I don't believe they would abandon their knighthood to remain loyal to a mere Sir like you?

Joking aside, whether you are Davis or Ergons, you still have to provide me with a continuous supply of quality soldiers."

The Baron was in a good mood, but it seemed there was still something he hadn't fully grasped.

He attributed it to his age, rubbed his temples, and continued signing the mobilization order.

The next day, after the newly arrived soldiers in the village had a hearty breakfast, they were ordered to assemble in the large drying ground in front of the granary.

These soldiers didn't think much of it; it was their first time seeing the total, so they figured they should get acquainted!

However, upon arriving, they saw farming tools piled to the side and newly made leather jumpsuits that, despite appearing new, emitted a foul odor. A bad premonition washed over them.

Ergons Tervalin did not appear. Standing on the steps in front of the granary was a towering figure, completely encased in gleaming silver armor.

He heard a muffled command issue from within his featureless, thick helmet.

"Since you're here, today's task is to help the peasant women turn the compost."

The soldiers dared not resist. They instantly lost their appetite for breakfast and, after changing into their work clothes, joined the peasant women outside the castle to labor at the foul-smelling compost pit.

As they worked, a light cavalryman, his helmet adorned with flamingo feathers, arrived before Ergons. He presented a mobilization order and a token of command representing the Baron.